Nigel Lawson

Nigel Lawson (11 March 1932-) was the British Chancellor of the Exchequer from 11 June 1983 to 26 October 1989, succeeding Geoffrey Howe and preceding John Major.

Biography
Nigel Lawson was born in London, England in 1932 to a wealthy Jewish family, and he was educated at Westminster School and Oxford. He worked as a city journalist before entering Parliament for the Conservative Party for Blaby in 1974. As Financial Secretary to the Treasury from 1979 to 1981, he developed the Medium Term Financial Strategy, which aimed to reduce the growth of money supply to a given target over a period of five years. He was Secretary of State for Energy from 1981 to 1983, and as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1983 to 1989 made his mark through tax-cutting budgets. For some years, the economy boomed. However, his decision to ease monetary policy after the 1987 stock-market crash resulted in high inflation and interest rates. Together with a collapse in the housing market, which had been overheated by generous tax incentives, this resulted in a particularly deep recession from 1989. His sentiments in favor of European integration led to an inevitable clash with Margaret Thatcher, and caused his resignation in 1989. He was made a peer in 1992. His daughter Nigella Lawson would become a famous journalist, cookbook author, and television personality.